Wrecking tool



Sept. 16, 1958 J. A. LATloLAls WRECKING TOOL Filed Sept. 13, 1957 INVILNTOR. J'bsewu A LA'T\O\ A\S W Wu ATTOQNEYS United States Patent WRECKING TOOL Joseph A. Latiolais, Cecilia, La.

Application September 13, 1957, Serial No. 683,909

3 Claims. (Cl. 254-131) This invention relates to wrecking tools, crow bars, and the like. More particularly, the invention has reference to a generally improved wrecking tool, so designed as to provide a very effective prying action, that is designed to swiftly and easily pull sheathing or other boards off studs to which they are nailed.

One important object is to provide a wrecking tool having one portion that will engage against a stud, said tool having prongs that engage in back of a board that is to be pried off the stud, at opposite sides of the stud. In this way, it is proposed to provide maximum leverage at the exact points desired, without damage to the stud, or to the boards.

A second important object is to provide an improved tool of the character described that will be designed to be applied swiftly and easily to a board that is to be removed.

Another object is to provide an improved tool which will have maximum leverage considering the size of the tool.

A further object is to provide a tool that will be swiftly and easily disengageable from the board after the board has been pried off the stud.

Yet another object is to so form the tool as to permit the same to have general utility as a crow bar, apart from the particular functions described above.

Still another object of importance is to provide a wrecking tool of the character described which will have prongs and can be removed if desired, to permit use of the tool as a crow bar of completely conventional characteristics.

Other objects will appear from the following description, the claims appended thereto, and from the annexed drawing, in which like reference characters designate like parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a wrecking tool according to the present invention, a portion of the handle being broken away.

Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the tool in use, shown in different positions to which it is movable in full and dotted lines, the handle being partly broken away.

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view on line 3-3 of Figure 2.

Referring to the drawing in detail, an elongated rigidly constituted handle is formed at its front end with an extension 12 disposed at a wide obtuse angle to the length of the main portion 13 of the handle. Extension 12, in turn, at its front end, merges into an upwardly curving fulcrum portion 14, which curves through approximately ninety degrees.

The curved portion or fulcrum member 14 may appropriately be said as being projected in a direction laterally of the length of the handle constituted by the handle portions 12, 13, since said handle portions in effect constitute a continuous, elongated handle 10 which, if not completely straight from end to end thereof, is at least almost straight. In fact, the handle 10 could be completely straight, rather than composed of obtusely related portions 12, 13.

In any event, a connector plate 16 of rectangular configuration is disposed in a plane tangential to the circular cross section of the handle, as clearly shown in Figure 3. The plate is in overlying relation to the handle, and is welded thereto as at 17, medially between opposite sides of the plate.

A pair of identical, laterally spaced, parallel prongs or teeth is provided, each tooth being of obtusely angular formation as shown in Figure 2 and including an inner leg 18 and an outer leg 20. The inner leg 18 constitutes a proximal end portion of the tooth while the outer leg 20 constitutes a distal end portion. Thus, the inner leg 18 of each tooth is in underlying relation to one side edge portion of plate 16, in face-to-face contact with said plate, with the front end of the leg 18 projecting beyond the front edge of the plate, as shown in Figure 1.

At the free extremity of leg 20, there is provided a small lip or lug 22 which. is extended rearwardly and which has a rounded outer surface 23.

At the rear end of the leg 18, there is formed on each tooth an upwardly projecting, short connector portion 24 of the tooth integral at its upper end with a rearwardly extending abutment portion 26, the top surface 27 of which is curved through substantially with said abutment portion having a flat bottom surface in face-toface contact with the top surface of the plate 16. Connector portions 24 of the respective teeth extend through rectangular openings 28 of the base plate, with the rearwardly extending extensions 26 overlying the base plate in back of the openings 28.

This engages the rear ends of the teeth with the base plate, and connecting the legs 18 fixedly to the base plate forwardly of the extensions 26 are clamping plates 30 underlying the respective legs 18, and connecting bolts 32 extending through registering openings of plate 16 and clamping plate 30, at opposite sides of leg 18.

By removing bolts 32, each tooth can be swung downwardly from its Figure 1 position, rocking in opening 28 to permit extension 26 to be moved downwardly through the opening, thereby to completely disengage the tooth from the plate 16.

The free ends of the fulcrum 14 and of the teeth are disposed, as shown in Figure 2, substantially in a common vertical plane normal to the length of the front end portion 12 of the handle and normal also to the plane of the base plate 16.

At 36 there has been shown a conventional stud, and extending horizontally in front of the stud is a board 38 secured to the stud by nails 40.

In removing the board, one simply disposes the teeth at opposite sides of. the stud in back of board 38, with fulcrum portion 14 in engagement with the front surface of the stud. Then, the handle is rocked from its full line to its dotted line position of Figure 2, so that the device fulcrums on the free end of the portion 14. This is translated into a rearward movement of the leg 20, forcing the board 38 forwardly outwardly from the stud to remove the board from the stud.

It is believed apparent that the invention is not necessarily confined to the specific use or uses thereof described above, since it may be utilized for any purpose to which it may be suited. Nor is the invention to be necessarily limited to the specific construction illustrated and described, since such construction is only intended to be illustrative of the principles of operation and the means presently devised to carry out said principles, it being considered that the invention comprehends any minor change in construction that may be permitted within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A wrecking tool comprising an elongated handle; a fulcrum portion rigid with and projecting laterally from the-handle at one end of the handle, providing a fulcrum on'which thehandle may rock; a flat connector plate fixed ly secured medially between opposite sides thereof to the handle rearwardly a short distance from the fulcrum portion, said connector plate, having openings at opposite sides of and in laterally spaced relation to the handle; a pair of? identical, laterally spaced teeth carriedby the connector plate, each tooth being of obtusely-angular formand including a proximal leg and adistalleg, the proximal legs of the teeth being in face-to-face contact with-the'connector plate and being formed with offsets at one end and extending through saidopenings of the connector plate, the'distal legs of the teeth extending laterally from the handle-in a direction opposite to that in which the-fulcrum portion extends; andclamping means engaging the proximal legs with the connector plate, said clamping means being in spaced relation to said openings.

2; A wrecking tool comprising an elongated handle; a fulcrum portion rigid with and projecting laterally from the handle at one end of the handle, providing a fulcrum on which the handle may rock; a fiat connector plate fixedly secured medially between opposite sides thereof to the handle rearwardly a short distance from the fulcrumportion, said connector plate having openings at opposite sides of and in laterally spaced relation to the handle; a pair of identical, laterally spaced teeth carried by the connector plate, each tooth being of obtuselyangular form and including a proximal leg and a distal leg, the proximal legs of the teeth being in face-to-face contact with the. connector plate and being formed with oflsets at one end and extending through said openings of the connector plate, the distal legs of the teeth extending laterally'from the handle in a direction opposite to that in which the fulcrum portion extends; and clamping means engaging the proximal legs with the connector plate, said clamping means being in spaced relation to said openings, comprising a pair of clamping plates underlying the proximal legs of the respective teeth, and a pair of clamping bolts extending through each clamping plate, the bolts of each pair being disposed at opposite sides of an associated proximal leg and being extended through the connector plate, for clamping engagement of each proximal leg between the connector plate and a clamping plate.

3. A wrecking tool comprising an elongated handle; a fulcrum portion rigid with and projecting laterally from the handle at one end ofthe handle, providing a fulcrum on which the handle may rock; a fiat connector plate fixedly secured medially between. opposite sides thereof to the handle rearwardly a short distance from the fulcrum portion, said connector plate having openings at opposite sides of and in laterally spaced relation to the handle; a pair of identical, laterally spaced teeth carried by the connector plate, each tooth being of obtuselyangular: form and including a proximal leg and a distal leg, the proximal legs of the teeth being in face-to-face contact with the connector plate and being formed with offsets atone end and extending through said openings of theconnector plate, the distal legs of the teeth extending laterally from the handle in a direction opposite to that in which the fulcrum portion extends; and clamping means engaging the proximal legs with the connector plate, said clamping means being in spaced relation to said openings, said distal legs having free ends disposed UNITED STATES PATENTS Robert Jan; 8-. r 

